1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to the field of vehicles and principally to a tandem bicycle construction.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various prior art devices for converting a conventional single passenger bicycle to tandem pedalling operation are exemplified in U.S. Pat. No. 2,277,727 issued to D. A. Swanson on Mar. 31, 1942; U.S. Pat. No. 2,385,892 issued to D. A. Swanson on Oct. 2, 1945; U.S. Pat. No. 2,723,132 issued to A. R. Oberwegner on Nov. 8, 1955; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,913,944 issued to James H. Blow, Jr., applicant herein, on Oct. 21, 1975. The two Swanson patents disclose arrangements which require extensive modifications of the rear wheel hub portion of the bicycle which would preclude its use as a simple attachment to a conventional bicycle. The Oberwegner patent discloses a relatively complex mechanism in which the auxiliary operation describes a generally elliptical path of movement which may be found to be both awkward and uncomfortable for an operator unfamiliar with such motion. The Blow patent, although disclosing a simpler and more convenient assembly, still requires a careful adjustment and alignment of components to insure that the main and auxiliary drive mechanisms rotate in correspondence with one another during operation.